Explanation:
What's that black dot over the Sun?
The Moon.
This past weekend, the
Sun went dark during the day as the Moon completely covered it.
The total solar eclipse was visible over a
thin swath of
Earth extending from northern Canada to China.
As shown above, many
sky enthusiasts gathered
to witness the total or partial solar eclipse, which lasted only a few minutes.
The above image was taken during totality near
Barkol in
Xinjiang,
China, with the
Barkol Shan
mountain range visible on the horizon.
Although the brightest parts of the Sun are covered, the normally invisible
corona
of hot gas surrounding the Sun became prominent.
Just to the upper left of the Moon darkened Sun are planets
Mercury and Venus.
The increased
darkening of the sky
toward the right indicates the darkened atmosphere created by the passing
shadow cone of the total solar
eclipse.
The next total solar eclipse will occur next July and be visible in parts of India and China.